Re: Sebastien Coates Player Thread

Get in! I'm not going to pretend I'm been watching him for ages and know all about him but I like what I've seen and have high hopes.I also hope that you'll all give him some time to settle in, so many struggle when they come over from South America.Welcome to LFC!

Re: Sebastien Coates Player Thread

Nacional will get 8 million dollars to be payed in many installments. Add the players cut, and taxes and you get the final figure(not a clue to those 2)Also 2 matches will be played between them and Liverpool in dates to be arrangedPlus, there has been an agreement where Liverpool will partly fund nacionals youth projects, and in return gets "first choice" or something like that.

thats what is being reported here, and from the mouth of nacionals VP.

Re: Sebastien Coates Player Thread

Director of Football Damien Comolli speaks to Liverpoolfc.tv after securing the deal to bring Uruguay international Sebastian Coates to Anfield.

First of all Damien, tell us about the qualities of our latest signing...

He's a central defender who can play on either side, even though he's right footed. He has a fantastic physical presence, he's very good in the air offensively and defensively, he's very strong in one v ones and very good at clearing things in his own box. He has the mentality of Uruguay players that everyone can see in Luis Suarez; he never gives up, always commits himself and isn't scared of any challenge either on the ground or in the air. He also has this ability to play from the back, which is needed when you play for Liverpool Football Club.

Lots of defenders have been linked with the club this summer but Sebastian's name only came onto the radar over the last couple of weeks. Is he a player you have been tracking for a while?

Myself and my scouting staff have been tracking him for over two years now, since the Copa America U20 tournament in Venezuela. Then he went to the U20 World Cup in Egypt in 2009 and we kept an eye on him during the season, playing for his club Nacional where he was the captain, and then our scout went to the Copa America this summer just for confirmation of what we were thinking about him.

The fact that Soto and Daniel Ayala went made room for us to sign a player at the back, because we needed him.

There has been a lot of talk this summer about Liverpool signing English players, but this transfer demonstrates the work of your worldwide scouting network...

We have always said we are not focused on the passport but on the quality, and we have been very happy with the quality we have found in the Premier League. But Sebastian is exactly what we needed and the fact that Luis is here helped a great deal. I am sure people know he was linked with a lot of clubs and there was a lot of interest in him, both before and then after the Copa America because of his performances for Uruguay, but Luis spoke to him and although I don't know what he told him about Liverpool Football Club, he must have said something which was positive and then Sebastian said he wanted to come here. The fact that Luis is here is a major factor in his decision.

He's a Copa America winner and also won the Young Player of the tournament award - what does that tell you about his winning mentality?

It's exactly what he's got. If you see the games during the Copa America he was one of the youngest defenders, if not the youngest to play most of the games. Nothing touched him, he handled it perfectly and for us it was proof he was ready to come here because it was the biggest stage you can find in South America and for such a young player to do as well as he did in keeping more experienced players on the bench during the tournament was a strong sign of both his personality and of the level he can get to.

How suited is his game to English football and the Premier League?

His qualities are perfect for the Premier League because here you can face more direct teams where you have to head the ball several times during the game and make sure your presence is being felt on set pieces and throw-ins. He also has the ability to play against big players, he's not afraid to be isolated one on one and defend properly. We think he is the complete package. He is only 20 so there is a lot of time for improvement, and playing alongside Martin, Jamie or Daniel will help him improve fantastically, I'm sure, and training on a daily basis against Suarez or Andy will be a new challenge for him but we know already he will bring a big contribution to the team and to the squad.

I have said several times during the summer that we don't buy a young player for the next six months or the next year, it's a long term commitment where we commit to him and he commits to us. We know he will be an even better player in two or three years time.

And if he settles in as quickly and as well as Luis Suarez has done, then he'll be doing very well...

People say we have paid a decent fee for a young player who has just made it on the international scene, but we've got a reference that we know taking a young Uruguayan player has worked before and we know that Luis is going to help him a lot to settle in and to adapt to the Premier League. We think we've got plenty of guarantees that he's going to do well.

Welcome to our wonderful club cant wait to see this lad in a red jersey.Liverpool have completed the signing of highly-rated Uruguay international Sebastian Coates - but what do you know about our new defender?

Liverpoolfc.tv brings you up to speed with 10 interesting facts.

1. Coates is nicknamed 'Luganito' by Uruguay fans because he's seen as the natural successor to the captain of the national team, Diego Lugano. Indeed, Lugano has previously said himself that he expects Coates to go on to skipper the national team.

2. Coates's signing now means Liverpool have two Copa America winners in their squad - Luis Suarez, crowned player of the tournament, and Sebastian Coates, young player of the tournament.

3. Standing at a towering 6ft and 6 inches, Sebastian comes close to being the Reds' tallest ever player - dwarfed only by Peter Crouch.

4. Coates shares his birthday with another giant ex-Red, Sami Hyypia. The duo were both born on October 7, a date that is also special for Simon Cowell and Alesha Dixon.

5. The 20-year-old has actually scored against a Liverpool side before - Liverpool Fútbol Club - who Coates faced whilst playing for Nacional.

6. In an interview with Ovacion, Coates revealed that it was talks with his fellow countryman Luis Suarez that helped persuade him to choose Liverpool. Coates said: "We chatted for quite a while, he told me it was a club with great history and tradition. He's doing well there and it's important to me because another Uruguayan will be there".

7. The Uruguayan shouldn't have too much trouble learning English. Sebastian's father, Peter, is an Englishman himself and the player has admitted previously to taking a couple of lessons off him.

8. Coates made his debut for Nacional against Bella Vista at the age of 17 and was afterwards voted man of the match by journalists from Spanish newspaper El Pais.

9. Since then the defender has started every single game for Nacional, withstanding suspension and national duty.

10. Coates is currently the only player in the current Uruguay squad who's never lost a game whilst playing for the national team

Re: Sebastien Coates Player Thread

Quote from: Reprobate on August 05, 2011, 10:19:59 AMHave we been linked?Never heard anything. Just saying that when he was asked about a possible transfer involving Coates to Liverpool (just a rumor) he looked as if he knew something, but didnt want to say. Maybe its just my imagination.